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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

Global governance of migration

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1407 , 6 credits )
Module: 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Portfolio Elective | 5. Human Rights & Global Governance Concentration Elective
Instructors: Dr. Natalie Welfens

Abstract

Global governance of migration refers to policies, norms and practices that internationally regulate the mobility and rights of mobile populations. In this course we will examine global migration governance with a focus on key International Organisations at the international level as well as the specific dynamics and actors in the context of the European Union. Among other, we will discuss the work of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the EU border agency Frontex as well as the EU’s attempts to control migration beyond its territorial borders. We will analyse these different topics with particular emphasis on inequalities, inclusion and exclusion, for instance by focussing on how mobile populations are categorised based on nationality, gender, or age and the inequalities this produces. Overall, the course aims to not only provide a comprehensive overview of the origins and evolution of the global migration regime, its key actors and challenges, but also to shed light on the power and politics that shape this regime and its outcomes.  

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

International organisations: Theories, practices, challenges

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1422 , 6 credits )
Module: 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Portfolio Elective | 5. Management & Organisation Concentration Elective | 5. Human Rights & Global Governance Concentration Elective
Instructors: Harry Bauer

Abstract

International organisations (IOs) are tasked with solving some of the toughest global problems – from climate change to international conflicts. Understanding their power, limitations and how they make decisions is crucial for our understanding of international affairs and its trajectory. This is particularly so, since many of today’s key international organisations were established in the 20th century but face contestation as well as emerging new policy issues. Therefore international organisations are faced with the challenge of accommodating these new issues of legitimacy and policy within their existing mandates. Moreover, international organisations must respond to changing power dynamics since newly emerging powers, corporations and civil society actors have become influential players on the international stage. This course examines how IOs are responding to the challenges of 21st-century global politics. When examining key IOs, like the United Nations, the United Nations Security Council, the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, World Trade Organisation and the OECD, we ask questions like how do they work? How are international organisations adapting and maintaining their legitimacy in a challenging environment? What answers do they provide to key issues of world politics?

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

Lobbying and transparency in the EU

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1431 , 6 credits )
Module: 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Portfolio Elective | 5. European Governance Concentration Elective
Instructors: Dr. Ronny Patz

Abstract

Over the past decades, Brussels has not just become the regulatory centre of the European Union but also one of the major lobbying capitals of the world. In this course, we study how lobbying works in Brussels, what we know about the population of interest groups and lobbyists who try to influence EU policymaking all across Europe, and how EU lobbying has become increasingly regulated. Students will also learn how general decision-making transparency in the EU and lobbying are linked and how EU lobby transparency has evolved over the past decade. The course combines academic insights and state-of-the-art research methods with Ronny Patz' personal experience in influencing EU policies and shaping EU lobby regulation in Brussels.

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MDS and MPP students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

Performance management

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1417 , 6 credits )
Module: 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Portfolio Elective | 6. Governance & Management Elective | 5. Management & Organisation Concentration Elective
Instructors: Salvador Parrado

Abstract

This course provides the knowledge and the tools to apply performance management in public sector organizations and the non-governmental sector. It aims at helping students to use metrics of different sorts (objective, subjective; quantitative, qualitative; performance indicators, indexes) to assess the performance of organizations. Although the focus is on the public and the non-governmental sector, the applied knowledge can be easily transferred to the private sector. Additionally, the course deals with the use of performance information and the strategies to enhance performance including the use of specific frameworks like the Balanced Scorecard. Finally, the course also focuses on the downsides of performance management and what to do about them: chiefly, facing the immeasurable and fighting the manipulation of scores and performance indicators.

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

Political economy of climate change

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1428 , 6 credits )
Module: 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Portfolio Elective | 5. Policy Analysis Concentration Elective | 5. Security & Sustainability Concentration Elective

Abstract

Despite recent progress in the implementation of climate policy, there is still a gap between countries' plans and what would be needed to stay on track to keep global temperature increase below 2°C. The lecture proposes to analyse the main obstacles to advancing climate policy through an economics lens. After a brief introduction on climate change and an overview of recent trends in climate policy, the lecture will tackle the current challenges facing climate policy and potential solutions, such as obstacles to coordinating multiple actors or gaining public support. For each topic, the lecture will draw heavily from real policy examples, such as international negotiations within the UNFCCC, resistance to carbon taxation, as well as policies in the food, building and transportation sectors.

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

Politics of forced migration

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1405 , 6 credits )
Module: 6. Portfolio Elective | 7. Portfolio Elective | 5. Policy Analysis Concentration Elective | 5. International Security Concentration Elective | 5. Security & Sustainability Concentration Elective

Abstract

This module aims to introduce students to past and current research on the politics of forced migration. The course can be divided into three subsections: causes of displacement, effects of displacement flows on the destination and how hosts respond to flows. It will start by introducing the main concepts and historical and legal developments. Then, it will explore the causes of forced migration movements with an emphasis on politics, conflict and the environment. Later, it will move on to where people flee and investigate how forced migration flows affect the security and economy of host communities. Afterwards, the module will focus on how destination countries govern forced migration flows and how people in the host countries react. Developed countries (e.g., Germany) as well as developing countries (e.g., Jordan) will be investigated. Finally, the course will also cover under which circumstances displaced people move back to their home and the effects of this return on society.

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

Public ethics

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1416 , 6 credits )
Module: 6. Portfolio Elective | 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Governance & Management Elective | 5. Human Rights & Global Governance Concentration Elective
Instructors: Richard Bellamy

Abstract

This module explores the ethical dimensions of politics. It investigates the moral responsibilities of politicians, public servants and citizens. It also examines various philosophical methods through which one might morally evaluate the behaviour these actors exhibit and the policies they enact; and it assesses the advantages and disadvantages of these methods.


Combining theory and practice, the module combines abstract philosophical debates with concrete case studies. The course focuses on the process of political debate and policymaking. It addresses such issues as the use of violence and official secrecy, the morality of lying, the dangers of hypocrisy, the necessity of compromise, the permissibility of protest, and the moral limits of the market.


 Students will reflect on such questions as whether the ends justify the means, whether a good character is necessary or sufficient for taking ethically good political decisions, the relevance of context to the moral criteria we apply and conclusions we draw, and the nature of public reasoning and justification.

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

 

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

Social inequality

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1429 , 6 credits )
Module: 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Portfolio Elective | 5. Policy Analysis Concentration Elective
Instructors: Prof. Dr. Michaela Kreyenfeld

Abstract

This course provides an overview of theories and methods in social inequality and social stratification research. We will examine the origin of economic and social inequalities as well as health disparities. The main aim of the course is to combine theory and empirical investigations. We start with macro level data and revisit standard definitions and measures of poverty and social exclusion. We then turn to micro-level data analysis which not only allows us to study how age, gender, class, education and race, ethnicity or migration relate to social inequality, but also to uncover which patterns of disadvantage intersect. Students are expected to have some basic programming skills (usually obtained through STATS I).

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

The psychology of intergroup relations

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1395 , 6 credits )
Module: 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Portfolio Elective | 5. Policy Analysis Concentration Elective | 5. Security & Sustainability Concentration Elective | 5. International Security Concentration Elective
Instructors: Prof. Ruth Ditlmann, PhD

Abstract

This course introduces students to psychological theories of prejudice and intergroup relations, with an emphasis on applying these theories to public policy. After learning what empirical methods and assumptions guide the social psychological study of intergroup relations (mostly different experimental paradigms), we will review classic and contemporary theory and research on intergroup relations and prejudice from social psychology. While the core of this research is US-based, we will read empirical articles testing these theories in different countries, pertaining to different group dynamics, whenever possible. At the end of the course, we will focus on applications of such theory and research to pressing social issues, such as anti-prejudice interventions in different settings (education, media etc.) and post-conflict reconciliation.

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

The weaponisation of soft power

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1392 , 6 credits )
Module: 6. Portfolio Elective | 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Governance & Management Elective | 5. Security & Sustainability Concentration Elective | 5. Management & Organisation Concentration Elective | 5. International Security Concentration Elective
Instructors: Pierre Buhler

Abstract

This course aims to provide students with a comprehensive overview and understanding of the use and – increasingly – abuse by several authoritarian states of the tools originally meant to project soft power. Defined in 1989 by Harvard scholar Joseph Nye as the appeal of a country through the values it embodies, its culture and its foreign policy, soft power has attracted the attention of authoritarian states.
Those states had indeed become aware of the benefits they could draw from soft power tools providing useful conduits for disinformation, propaganda, and manipulation, all powered by the multiplier effect of social media. Cultural diplomacy, human exchanges, students, academic and scientific cooperation schemes have also become vehicles for entryism into other states’ relevant institutions. Economic and business interdependence has been transformed into a platform for influence. This is how those tools have been 'weaponized'.
After a detailed description of the many ways in which those policies are conducted, the course will focus on the different strategies that underpin them, the narratives they aim at spinning, and the defenses available to democracies against that 'deceptive use of information for hostile purposes”, which Nye analyses as “a type of hard power”.

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of International Affairs Master of Public Policy

Treasure or trouble: Managing mineral wealth

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1400 , 6 credits )
Module: 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Portfolio Elective | 5. Security & Sustainability Concentration Elective | 5. Human Rights & Global Governance Concentration Elective
Instructors: Monika Weber-Fahr

Abstract

This course explores the opportunities and challenges associated with countries’ mineral wealth and extractive industries. Mineral resources are a large part of our everyday life - the spoon we use, the phone we hold, the tooth that gets filled - but go unnoticed by most of their users and ignored in public debate, unless a major disaster happens. Yet, our societal choices – in terms of policies and management practices – matter profoundly for mining countries’ economic, social and environmental health, as well as in terms of peace, integrity, and institutional stability. As the world is embarking on massive climate-change driven transitions, the mineral intensity of most clean energy technologies has brought renewed attention to the “treasure and trouble” associated with the extractive industries and their related facilities. Students will take a journey through the A-Z of what policymakers and industry can do – and need to be mindful of – in creating policy options and shaping management approaches for building economic, social, and environmental wealth based on – and perhaps despite – the mineral resources they own and work with.

Throughout the course, students will get to explore and understand the context and rationale for the often-different paths taken by countries and corporates. Using practical examples from around the world, across the 70+ mining countries, the course will cover 12 main topics associated with Mineral Wealth and Extractive Industries: (1) Economic Development, Poverty Reduction, and Revenue Management; (2) Shared Value and Local Social Development and Alliances; (3) Water; (4) Energy; (5) Integrity and Corruption; (6) Labor Relations and Human Rights; (7) Gender Dimensions in Mining Policies and Management Approaches; (8) Mining Companies and their Organizational Challenges; (9) Small-Scale Mining; (10) Mine Closure and Industrial Re-Structuring; (11) ESG Principles and Standards across Countries and Industry Players; and (12) Accountability and Complaints Mechanisms.  The course will include in-person discussions with a senior manager who has for many years led the World Bank’s Mining Practice and with a senior manager from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) who oversees the evaluation of GEF funded programs including, amongst other things, some that are designed to lessen the negative impact of mining in terms of human and environmental health.

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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Master of Data Science for Public Policy Master of Public Policy Master of International Affairs

Ukraine: A European war

Year 2 | Elective course (GRAD-E1404 , 6 credits )
Module: 7. Portfolio Elective | 6. Portfolio Elective | 5. Security & Sustainability Concentration Elective | 5. International Security Concentration Elective
Instructors: Wolfgang Sporrer

Abstract

This course will examine the roots, the events and the consequences of the Russian war against Ukraine.

This course is for 2nd year MIA, MPP and MDS students only.

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